Renovating houses and Building Control

[Spinney]

Thanks @Eddy , I didn't know about breathable membranes! I'll look into it.

 

[Hicky]

I'm going through using building control atm for a large loft conversion. I'm using local authority rather than private building control.
They are very very helpful but want everything ticked and crossed to the nth degree, which is a good thing for safety but is a pain, it changes our ground floor from open plan as it is and not up to fire safety regs(but isn't part of the alterations at all). We are very unlikely to move but with a large project everything needs to be spot on if we ever sell on....or avoid any issues our kids could run into in the future.
I had a stove in my old house and didn't get a cert but a "sticker" for the work. To bring one up to regs depending on the chimney etc isn't a huge cost and wouldn't worry me if I liked the house. I'd be getting the solicitor to be doing the chasing with both the form who done the work and the local authority too.
If the firm has a public page ie facebook then pose a question on there that requires answering they're more likely to contact you so they don't look bad, sort of forcing their hand. Best of luck.

 

[MichaelW2]

Our current renovation requires correct staircase gradient and headroom, fire doors and exit routes.

 

[Hicky]

Our current renovation requires correct staircase gradient and headroom, fire doors and exit routes.

Yep, Fire doors, protected routes of escape and plasterwork(lathe work) not being good enough is often the issue.

 

[bikingdad90]

Our current renovation requires correct staircase gradient and headroom, fire doors and exit routes.

As previously said, That was how we spotted the issue. The access to the garage was a normal internal door not a fire rated one, was a stud wall not a concentrate wall and not a stepped access to stop liquid spreading.

 

[Archie_tect]

Sign off was done by a private firm, but the letter also had the local council's details on it, so I assumed it was an approved contractor or some such thing.

I accept that standards might change - I bought in 2014, and the house had just been renovated. It's things like whether the loft should be ventilated (I assume yes, the buyer's surveyor said it wasn't but he only stuck his head through the hatch, and I wanted to know if that kind of thing was required in 2014 and if it was checked).
Also, there is a solid fuel stove, but I never got a HETAS certificate for it, which buyers seem to want. I don't know why my conveyancer did not ask for this when I bought the house, but I wondered if the installation was covered as part of building regs. I don't think either would be very expensive to sort out/get, but I did wonder if they were things that should have been checked when the place was signed off.

Any Completion Certificate issued by an Approved Inspector is valid though you can challenge the Approved Inspector's findings and the contractor's work if it's defective. Contracts for defecrtive work can be challenged for up to 6 years from the work being completed for contracts signed under hand. Legally you have no contractual link with the contractor or the approved inspector who did the work for the original owner and it might only serve to identify any shortfalls which you would then be responsible for.

It's impossible for anyone to say for certain without seeing the drawings, the specification and the work done- I'd speak to your local Building Inspector for peace of mind.

 

[Brains]

Any Completion Certificate issued by an Approved Inspector is valid though you can challenge the Approved Inspector's findings and the contractor's work if it's defective. Contracts for defecrtive work can be challenged for up to 6 years from the work being completed for contracts signed under hand. Legally you have no contractual link with the contractor or the approved inspector who did the work for the original owner and it might only serve to identify any shortfalls which you would then be responsible for.

It's impossible for anyone to say for certain without seeing the drawings, the specification and the work done- I'd speak to your local Building Inspector for peace of mind.

However, this presumes the plans were accurate in the first place and the contractor is still trading.

The house next door to us we recently underwent a major renovation (new rear wall, roof, extra rooms and total internal strip out)
The plans were obviously originally drawn for a very similar property, but not identical, hence the steels they had cut were all the wrong length, they had to add a foot of brickwork to the roof line, which means the house is higher than all the others in the terrace.
They removed two chimney breasts, not on the plans, that went into both of the next door properties.
Just as the project was 95% completed the contractor went bust.

The property is shoddily rebuilt and I'll guarantee they have problems over the next few years, unfortunately they will have no one to turn to.
(They have already had to replace the entire ground floor floorboards as they were laid using soft pine, which looked 100 years old after a few months as every heel made a dent)

 

[Spinney]

Any Completion Certificate issued by an Approved Inspector is valid though you can challenge the Approved Inspector's findings and the contractor's work if it's defective. Contracts for defecrtive work can be challenged for up to 6 years from the work being completed for contracts signed under hand. Legally you have no contractual link with the contractor or the approved inspector who did the work for the original owner and it might only serve to identify any shortfalls which you would then be responsible for.

It's impossible for anyone to say for certain without seeing the drawings, the specification and the work done- I'd speak to your local Building Inspector for peace of mind.

Thanks for that info - I realise they have no contractual link to me, I was really just after information.
My initial query was really what kind of things would they check. In particular:
- would they check the loft was properly ventilated
- a new wood burning stove was fitted, would they check the chimney had been correctly lined and that the necessary external ventilation was provided (having said that, the house we live in has no external ventilation in the room with the wood burner! )

Just wondering if you know the scope of such certificates.

It's probably just easier to get a HETAS registered person and a builder to look at the two issues.

 

[Archie_tect]

Loft spaces can be sealed warm roofs or vented cold roofs [depends where the insulation is].

Can be ventilated with either, 10mm continuous slots at eaves and 5mm continuous slots at ridge [or equivalent, or have breathable roofing membranes [Tyvek or similar, usually printed in large lettering on membrane itself!] which don't need vent slots at eaves.

Wood burners need external ventilation under Building Regs [usually an air brick or possibly through floor if suspended floor], it may rely on vents in windows or under doors for combustion air supply, or it may be a sealed balanced flue fire.

Lots of variables, best speak to B Inspector for complete peace of mind- you may need to do retro work if needed under B Regs but then that's for your safety and acts as a paper trail if you sell on.

 

[Spinney]

Loft spaces can be sealed warm roofs or vented cold roofs [depends where the insulation is].

Can be ventilated with either, 10mm continuous slots at eaves and 5mm continuous slots at ridge [or equivalent, or have breathable roofing membranes [Tyvek or similar, usually printed in large lettering on membrane itself!] which don't need vent slots at eaves.

Wood burners need external ventilation under Building Regs [usually an air brick or possibly through floor if suspended floor], it may rely on vents in windows or under doors for combustion air supply, or it may be a sealed balanced flue fire.

Lots of variables, best speak to B Inspector for complete peace of mind- you may need to do retro work if needed under B Regs but then that's for your safety and acts as a paper trail if you sell on.

Thank you.